Permit system
How allocations work and why length of stay decides your odds.
Permit guideAdvanced Open Water or equivalent has been mandatory since October 2022. It is enforced at the jetty, not negotiated at the resort, and it is the single most common reason divers arrive and cannot go.
Since October 2022, Sabah Parks has required Advanced Open Water certification or equivalent for anyone diving Sipadan. PADI AOW, SSI Advanced Adventurer, BSAC Sports Diver, CMAS two-star and equivalents from other recognised agencies are all accepted.
The rule exists for a defensible reason. Sipadan is open-ocean wall diving with sites reaching 40 metres and currents that change fast. An Open Water diver certified to 18 metres, on a strong day at Barracuda Point, with a vertical wall on one side and 600 metres of water beneath, is a genuine safety problem for themselves and for their guide.
Bring your certification card and your logbook. Digital certification through agency apps is usually accepted but not universally, so carry the physical card if you have it. Rangers check identification against the permit list at the Sipadan jetty, and a permit paid for and allocated in your name is still refused without matching ID.
There is no exception route. Not for experienced Open Water divers with hundreds of dives, not for instructors' friends, not for a fee. Operators who imply otherwise are risking their licence, which should tell you something about the rest of their operation.
Certification is the legal minimum. Operators layer their own requirements on top, and these vary more than the certification rule does.
Logged dive minimums. Many operators want to see at least 20 logged dives regardless of certification level, and some ask for more on the current-swept sites. A freshly certified AOW diver with nine dives will usually be accommodated, but expect to be placed with a guide and on the gentler sites first.
Check dives. Nearly every operator runs a check dive on the house reef before putting you on a Sipadan boat, usually on arrival day. This is buoyancy and weighting assessment, not an exam, but it is also where guides decide who gets grouped with whom. Dive it properly.
Recency. If your last dive was more than a year ago, expect to be asked for a refresher. Some operators require it formally; most will strongly suggest it. On a trip this expensive, arriving current is worth more than the refresher costs.
Nitrox. Not required, and not necessary — Sipadan dive profiles are shallow enough on the two-dive schedule that air is fine for most divers. Available at most operators if you are certified.
Every resort in the area runs Advanced Open Water on demand, and it is the most commonly sold course on Mabul for exactly this reason. Expect RM1,200 to RM1,600 and two diving days. Book a 5D4N or 6D5N package so the course fits without consuming your Sipadan day — the itinerary comparison shows how the days lay out — complete AOW in the first days, and dive Sipadan later in the same trip.
This works well and the course itself is enjoyable — deep, navigation and drift adventure dives on Mabul are legitimate diving, not classroom time. The cost is that you lose two days of diving you would otherwise have spent exploring.
Cheaper and better. Completing AOW at home costs less than resort rates in most countries, gives you time to build logged dives before the trip, and means every day at Mabul is a diving day. If your trip is more than two months out, do this.
Open Water divers can dive Mabul and Kapalai without restriction, and both are excellent — Mabul's house reef is world-class muck diving. A non-Sipadan package runs RM1,500 to RM2,500 less. If Sipadan is not the whole point of the trip, this is a perfectly good outcome rather than a compromise. See diving Sipadan as a beginner.
Medical. Standard agency medical declaration. A yes to any question means a physician's sign-off, and you want that resolved before you fly to Tawau, not on Mabul where there is no doctor. Divers with asthma, cardiac history or recent surgery should get clearance in writing in advance.
Insurance. Most operators require proof of dive insurance. Standard travel policies frequently exclude diving below 18 metres, which rules them out for Sipadan entirely — check the depth limit rather than the tick box. DAN and equivalent specialist policies are the usual answer.
Age. AOW certification generally requires 15 years, or Junior Advanced from 12 with depth restrictions that make Sipadan impractical. Under-12s can visit as snorkellers but pay full adult package rates for Sipadan days.
No-fly window. No diving on departure day, and flights out of Tawau should depart after 16:00. This is a hard rule, not a suggestion, and it shapes your whole itinerary.
Equipment. Tanks, weights and belt are included. Everything else is rental at roughly RM60 to RM100 per day. A surface marker buoy is effectively mandatory on the drift sites — bring your own if you have one.
Depth profiles and currents by site, so you know what you are certifying for.
Site profilesAdvanced Open Water or equivalent — PADI AOW, SSI Advanced Adventurer, BSAC Sports Diver, CMAS two-star and comparable qualifications. Required since October 2022.
No. You can dive Mabul and Kapalai, or complete an Advanced course on site during the first days of your trip and dive Sipadan afterwards.
There is no national minimum, but many operators want at least 20. Newly certified AOW divers are usually accommodated with a guide on gentler sites.
Two diving days, costing roughly RM1,200 to RM1,600. Book a 5D4N or 6D5N package so it does not consume your Sipadan day.
Most operators require proof. Check that your policy covers diving below 18 metres — many standard travel policies do not, which makes them useless here.
Yes, along with your certification card. Rangers check identification against the permit list at the Sipadan jetty and operators check certification before boarding.
Tell us your certification level and roughly how many dives you have logged. We will tell you straight whether Sipadan works for your trip or whether you should plan an upgrade.
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